tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28839904031670342092017-08-16T06:46:18.232-07:00 Todd's Art FactoryWe build picturestodd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-43760771143992034622014-11-12T23:53:00.000-08:002014-11-13T00:00:07.822-08:00Boo Radley<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So this is a portrait of Boo Radley from "To Kill A Mockingbird". I know it's probably a little too old for Boo Radley's character but I just had too much fun with his multiple chins and gummy grin. The intention was to make it look like an old Rembrandt oil painting. Of course it's got nothing on Rembrandt but I thought it was a fun exercise and returned some good results.&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hQPR8y6gdEg/VGRk6qDVNFI/AAAAAAAAFL4/m5_RW04Sn_A/s1600/boo%2Bradley%2Bportrait%2Bfinal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hQPR8y6gdEg/VGRk6qDVNFI/AAAAAAAAFL4/m5_RW04Sn_A/s400/boo%2Bradley%2Bportrait%2Bfinal.jpg" width="335" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q5A7XEIxLDs/VGRhs9gthvI/AAAAAAAAFLs/pj-u6vL3z0w/s1600/Boo-Radley.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q5A7XEIxLDs/VGRhs9gthvI/AAAAAAAAFLs/pj-u6vL3z0w/s400/Boo-Radley.gif" width="336" /></a></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-7965938084144132702014-09-27T12:14:00.002-07:002014-09-27T12:14:36.893-07:00NoveltySo the new fall semester has begun and I've enrolled in a digital painting class taught by Jim Madsen. It's been really great so far. We're cranking out one digital painting per week. It's hard to keep up but it's a great way to increase my efficiency in painting. &nbsp;This weeks subject word was Novelty, based on the "illustration friday" webpage. So novelty... hmm. Anything new and unique right? Well the first thing that came to my mind was novelty gift stores, that sell gag gifts and trick toys. But then I thought, why not one of those creepy trench coat street vendors? So that's what I did. Jim instructed us this week to choose an illustrator that we really admire and mimic their style with this next piece. Lately I've really like Denis Zilber. He's a great digital painter with great character designs and great story telling. So I chose a painting of his to choose my color palet and worked from that. I've created a thumbnail page that shows my progress on this piece. You can see each of the different steps that I take in completing this.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B-5sT5pJ6IQ/VCcMdEmgPaI/AAAAAAAAFKo/xBF1I3LCFbU/s1600/Novelty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B-5sT5pJ6IQ/VCcMdEmgPaI/AAAAAAAAFKo/xBF1I3LCFbU/s1600/Novelty.jpg" height="400" width="348" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hEIc2o2QxJk/VCcMAjqz4uI/AAAAAAAAFKg/jwazXg3uEVE/s1600/novelty%2Bprogress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hEIc2o2QxJk/VCcMAjqz4uI/AAAAAAAAFKg/jwazXg3uEVE/s1600/novelty%2Bprogress.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-76954411264982304782014-06-09T07:23:00.001-07:002014-06-09T07:23:18.612-07:00Elvis PresleyAbout 3 years ago I changed jobs. I worked as a server for 5 years and finally made my way into an office job. Now I'm an in house graphic designer for a company in Provo, and about 20 pounds heavier than I was when I was serving tables (the only thing I miss is the calories I used to burn during work). Since I started working in an office I found that my music preference changed quite a bit from what I usually would listen to in the car. To explain further, I love music like Radiohead, Bright Eyes, Broken Social Scene ... that's a small list but it represents my taste pretty well. When I would play that music at work it just seemed to demand too much of my attention and I found myself really enjoying simpler music such as Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, Van Morrison, and Elvis. My brother is always so weirded out by me when i say how much I've come to enjoy listening to Elvis. My favorite song is Jailhouse Rock. There's this amazing combination of restraint and explosiveness that makes me want to jump up and rock out as would any Rage Against the Machine song. Merely the unexpected affect of the song is enough to excite me. As a side note, Patsy Cline has the most beautifully lonely sound on earth and Van Morrison is one of the greatest lyricist of all time (listen to "The Lion this Time").<br />This evolution in my music taste has inspired my latest piece that was required for my advanced figure drawing class this past semester. We were required to illustrate a caricature of a celebrity of any kind historical or fictional. I hope you enjoy it!<br /><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wgiAp-SrSug/U5XChTrCMMI/AAAAAAAAEZs/siRJD4WEbDU/s1600/elvis+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wgiAp-SrSug/U5XChTrCMMI/AAAAAAAAEZs/siRJD4WEbDU/s1600/elvis+2.jpg" height="640" width="346" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Digital Painting, Photoshop, Caricature, Elvis</td></tr></tbody></table>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-80094960352080903692014-03-09T12:25:00.000-07:002014-03-09T12:25:10.526-07:00The Adventures of Alice & Max<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z347sXFGp94/Uxy6ATg02sI/AAAAAAAAEWg/3Kwbnl5d58I/s1600/flat+illustration.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z347sXFGp94/Uxy6ATg02sI/AAAAAAAAEWg/3Kwbnl5d58I/s1600/flat+illustration.jpg" height="640" width="454" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's a recent piece that I did for one of my classes. The assignment was to include two children, an animal, architecture and a landscape. It had to have flat shapes, reverse perspective (things get bigger the further away they are) and it had to narrate a story. That's a lot of specific features that had to be applied to one piece. We looked at a lot of old retro children's book illustration to help us understand elements like "reverse perspective" and how to design with flat shapes. I really loved some of the old artwork that I found. Artwork by people like Marie Blair, Richard Scary, and Elizabeth Brosowska. Most people that know me, know that I have a taste for things that are old. So these old retro children's books really appealed to me. I had a lot of fun with it and though I'll be making some slight changes and improvements, I'm happy with how it turned out.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I titled this story "The Adventures of Alice &amp; Max". My wife and I have had so much fun the past two years with our little girl Alice. We now are expecting our second baby next month. It's a boy and his name is Max, and the best way to describe these past two semesters is an Adventure. My wife Brooke has been a champion this whole time. First of all she's been pregnant obviously, but on top of that she's been going to school full time at BYU while I've been at school as well. When you throw a 2 year old in the mix of that, life starts to feel pretty exhausting. &nbsp;We frequently imagine "how great" it will all be when we're done with school, but at times when I think in a larger perspective I feel very happy for where we are right now in our lives. I'm not sure if there will be a time of more rapid growth and learning than what we're experiencing right now, and I really am loving it.&nbsp;</span></div>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-81771554530696898992014-03-02T22:17:00.001-08:002014-03-02T22:17:10.252-08:00Personal Projects<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This semester has been absolutely crazy so far. This weekend I was supposed to be studying for a test on monday that is on Ancient Non-Western Art History (that's a mouth full). Instead of studying for that I decided to work on something i've wanted to do for a few weeks. A few weeks ago I went skiing with my brother in law Jeremy and his 3 kids. We went to Sundance, and it was so much fun even though it hadn't snowed for weeks at that point and the slopes were pretty icy. &nbsp;While I was there I noticed something that I've seen at various ski resorts before, that is the "underwear tree". I'm not sure where this all started, but it's a fun tradition and I thought it would make for a fun illustration. Now I need to find some time to study for my test.&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lTCtEdnCQ9U/UxPGcubA2cI/AAAAAAAAEU8/IabmX8tc5jk/s1600/Ski+utah+small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lTCtEdnCQ9U/UxPGcubA2cI/AAAAAAAAEU8/IabmX8tc5jk/s1600/Ski+utah+small.jpg" height="640" width="410" /></a></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-89669476567093267602013-12-20T14:13:00.000-08:002013-12-20T14:13:36.024-08:00Fall Semester<div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-49h5wJ0VfRE/UrShbTcUXII/AAAAAAAAD4U/wtpd7LAyxdw/s1600/Pirates+%25231+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-49h5wJ0VfRE/UrShbTcUXII/AAAAAAAAD4U/wtpd7LAyxdw/s640/Pirates+%25231+copy.jpg" width="544" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><i>The ship was tossed about as the crew fought hard against the crashing waves. “Land! I see land,” yelled Peter from the crows nest.</i></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NmaHm9FIalg/UrShbamjAKI/AAAAAAAAD4Y/TINiwSg6cSQ/s1600/Pirates+%25232+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="598" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NmaHm9FIalg/UrShbamjAKI/AAAAAAAAD4Y/TINiwSg6cSQ/s640/Pirates+%25232+.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><i>“What a beautiful Island”, said Paula. “There’s plenty of food and lots of trees to build a shelter”, said Dexter. “Let’s get to work”, said Peter.</i></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0oUPPSdJLlA/UrShbfLVeiI/AAAAAAAAD4c/7a0ozHlqr4U/s1600/Pirates+%25233.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="441" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0oUPPSdJLlA/UrShbfLVeiI/AAAAAAAAD4c/7a0ozHlqr4U/s640/Pirates+%25233.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><i>“I never want to leave!”, said Dexter. “Delicious”, said Paula. “Please pass the fruit salad”, said Peter. As the crew enjoyed their feast they laughed into the evening as a cool breeze blew across the island.</i></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; line-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><br /></span></div><a href="http://willterry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">These three pieces were done for my Children's Book Illustration class taught by Will Terry. He's an incredible instructor and I encourage anyone who is considering doing anything in Illustration to learn from him first. He teaches online classes or has instructional youtube videos that you can find through his blog. Or you can join me at UVU and take classes from Will there.</a><br /><br />Last fall, of 2012, I chose to go back to school and finish a degree in Illustration. The year previous to that decision I worked full time as an in-house graphic designer for a company in Provo called Rimports (they make candle warmers). I still work there part time and I'm very grateful for that job. It's a growing company and there has been lots of room for growth and promotion even in just the past two and half years I've worked there. The reason I tell you this is because there has been a battle in my mind over my dedication toward finishing school or seizing the available career opportunities at my current job. I have turned down promotional opportunities for the sake of staying in school and finishing my degree. Each time that a semester ends and a new one begins I feel tempted to say, "I've learned enough and I can move on at this point."&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: center;">HOWEVER, at the end of each semester I look over the work that I've accomplished and everything that I've learned and I know that my dedication to staying in school and finishing is paying off. I'm at the point where I'm excited to see what I can accomplish next semester. My work is far beyond perfect, but it's getting better.</div>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-88681467060708891892013-10-20T19:28:00.001-07:002013-12-20T11:46:11.951-08:00Birthday Cake Disaster!<div class="p1"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BC-fXY9IwR0/UmSQ-mzGvAI/AAAAAAAAC3w/5tiQy4uev5o/s1600/action+illustration+final.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="494" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BC-fXY9IwR0/UmSQ-mzGvAI/AAAAAAAAC3w/5tiQy4uev5o/s640/action+illustration+final.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sooooo this past week I've completed an assignment for my Children's book illustration class. We were given a short paragraph from a children's story that we were assigned to illustrate.</span></div><div class="p2"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="p3"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Jamie’s mom helped her put the finishing touches on her birthday cake and the house was all set for the party as Oscar slept on the window sill. Suddenly Timmy let the dog out of the basement and the chase was on! Around the living room and under the couch they ran and as Jamie began to cry Oscar leaped right off the cake splattering it everywhere!</i></span></div><div class="p2"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="p1"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">&nbsp;I've posted the development of this piece. I've started to feel a lot more confident about my process this semester. I start with a small thumbnail, I then blow it up and print it out at %50 transparency and then reprint it. I then redraw with more detail over the top of the print out. I do this over and over again, this enables me to make subtle changes each time I redraw my sketch.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DyhHp_8a7TU/UmSQlbhq56I/AAAAAAAAC3g/59n1RZVdqF4/s1600/birthday+cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DyhHp_8a7TU/UmSQlbhq56I/AAAAAAAAC3g/59n1RZVdqF4/s640/birthday+cake.jpg" width="635" /></a></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;">In this instance I decided that I wanted to have some fun with the background. So using a sheet of transparency paper, I laid it over my sketch and drew the back ground by itself. When i was finished I scanned it in and laid it into the back ground in photoshop.&nbsp;</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mEJjVbPmLa4/UmSQpjRjKkI/AAAAAAAAC3o/OqDsxPQyEXQ/s1600/oct9-008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="492" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mEJjVbPmLa4/UmSQpjRjKkI/AAAAAAAAC3o/OqDsxPQyEXQ/s640/oct9-008.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="p2"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="p2"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="p1"><br /></div><div class="p1"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="p1"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="p2"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="p4"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've been having a lot of fun this semester with my Children's Book Illustration class. I'm enjoying feeling like I'm starting to develop a kind of style.</span></div>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-68348294152393029962013-09-20T17:00:00.000-07:002013-09-20T17:00:09.758-07:00Sad Simon & The Woodland Creatures<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The new semester has just begun. I've been looking forward to it all summer. I'm gonna be honest, it's gonna be a tough semester. Maybe even a tough year from here till next fall. As I've entered the semester I've been trying to make time whenever available to try to get ahead on my assignments. The other day after completing two big assignments I took a break and went home and just sat and watched a movie with my wife Brooke. The next day I woke up and I was already behind. I guess that's just something I'll need to get used to in the business of illustration. It's incredibly competitive and there's a lot of talent out there, so it seems that i'll need to continue pushing hard the rest of my life to keep up with the field i'm in. Hope I don't sound too negative there.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's a piece that I just finished for my Children's Book Illustration class. It's based on a short story about a group of woodland creatures that get together for a special occasion to dine on sweet treats and baked goodies but one small woodland creature named Simon didn't get an invitation and he was left out in the cold. I felt a little bit like I had a break through with this piece. I did something different than I usually do and I left most of my original sketch in tact and used it as a way of creating texture in the figures. I spent a lot more time working on the drawing this time around and I really feel like it improved my end result. I don't feel like I have much of a style at this point but this method kind of introduces an element that I might want to use again in the future and maybe that will form into something of a style. I submitted this to my professor <a href="http://willterry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Will Terry</a>&nbsp;and he gave me some good input on how to improve it. I've actually learned a great deal from him about how to design a drawing. If you go to his&nbsp;<a href="http://willterry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">blog</a>&nbsp;you'll find he's got some great work and also a link to his online tutorials called "folio academy". It's through folio academy that I watched one of his video lessons called "how to design a drawing". I think about things in that video series nearly every time I begin a new illustration.&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-i-0m5YT4cKI/UjzdpPFQ8OI/AAAAAAAACYY/BpgKoyWv9iY/s1600/Todd's+Woodland+Creatures.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-i-0m5YT4cKI/UjzdpPFQ8OI/AAAAAAAACYY/BpgKoyWv9iY/s640/Todd's+Woodland+Creatures.jpg" width="492" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Digital Painting - photoshop - Children's book illustration - woodland creatures&nbsp;</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-10364999828599081782013-07-28T11:23:00.001-07:002013-07-28T11:23:57.678-07:00Chalkboard Typography<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This past week my sister Heather, got married. She's one of 7 sisters of mine. Her wedding was beautiful. A few weeks ago she asked me to put together a chalkboard sign that would list the various lawn games that would be available at the wedding. I've seen a lot of these kind of Chalkboard Typography projects. They're really elaborate and decorative. Sometimes they're done for restaurant menus or just a way of putting up a decorative quote in your home. I thought I would take advantage of the opportunity to try something new and maybe find something that I'd like to do more of in the future.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SX6KLiuWe9k/UfVhIcge7bI/AAAAAAAAB-I/2u58jf7Nv40/s1600/DSC_4966+small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SX6KLiuWe9k/UfVhIcge7bI/AAAAAAAAB-I/2u58jf7Nv40/s400/DSC_4966+small.jpg" width="316" /></a></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-a69el5SLH7A/UfVhIQc9PyI/AAAAAAAAB-E/sqeZ_x7_KB0/s1600/DSC_4967small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-a69el5SLH7A/UfVhIQc9PyI/AAAAAAAAB-E/sqeZ_x7_KB0/s400/DSC_4967small.jpg" width="265" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There's some things I'd like to change about it now that it's done. But that's almost always the case with art projects. They're never totally perfect. But it's been fun to do, and maybe I'll go see if a local restaurant would like a nice chalkboard art menu done for them.</span></div>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-79291530831098139652013-07-12T21:49:00.000-07:002013-07-12T21:49:05.489-07:00Old Sketch, New Project<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm getting excited for the new semester to start. I really enjoy the Illustration program that I'm in at Utah Valley University. There are so many talented artists in the program, both teachers and students. I miss them and I've missed always having 4 or 5 projects that I have to finish in 24 hours. So to get my digital painting juices flowing again I decided to do something for fun. I was going through some of my old sketches and I found an old one that I did of a cool little volkswagen rabbit. So I decided to finish it digitally and create a little scene for it. I had a lot of fun doing this and it felt good to get back into doing some illustrations.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZRTqrCAlyYU/UeDZ__QCt2I/AAAAAAAABTQ/vBnwRto_KY0/s1600/car+chase+small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZRTqrCAlyYU/UeDZ__QCt2I/AAAAAAAABTQ/vBnwRto_KY0/s640/car+chase+small.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: center;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: center;">I plan on finishing a couple more pieces before the semester starts. One that i'm excited to do here soon is based on an old sketch I did of super heros that kind of let themselves go. You know if they just got old and fat, what would they look like type of thing. My friend Brett Olsen reminded me of it a few weeks ago and encouraged me to do something with it. So I'll make sure to post that soon.&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: center;">My friend Brett is always reminding me of stuff that I did years ago and I can't even remember. I don't know why I forget so many things, but I think I'm gonna have to ask him to write my memoirs since I'm pretty sure he could recollect my life better than I can.</span>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-62860938964148810382013-07-10T17:00:00.000-07:002013-07-10T17:00:27.458-07:00The Ole Days<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I watched a movie recently called "Midnight in Paris". Many of you have probably heard of it or seen it. It's a pretty well known movie, it has Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams in it. A little bit about the movie is that Owen Wilson's character has always wished that he had been from an earlier time. Particularly the 1920's and preferably 1920's in Paris. Well he gets a very unique opportunity to venture into the past and see and live the life of 1920's Paris. He meets F. Scott Fitzgerald,&nbsp;Ernest Hemingway, Cole Porter, Pablo Picasso, and many other artists, musicians, and writers of that time. The story discusses the fixation that some people have on an era or time period that&nbsp;occurred&nbsp;before their own time, and the wish that they could have lived in that time. Anyway it's a good movie and fun to watch. I don't know if everyone has a similar fixation but I believe that I do have that same feeling for the mid-twentieth century in america. I love the products that were manufactured such as the cars, the furniture, the kitchen appliances, electronics, the homes, even the types of dishes that were made. So when I think about the type of things that I'd like to photograph, the things that I find attractive and beautiful, I think of these old things. Neon signs, old spinning barber polls, radios and record players.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-P3D6u0E6BBY/Ud3r3xLquNI/AAAAAAAABOs/vOoVtOd1KOQ/s1600/retro+series.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="background-color: #444444; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-P3D6u0E6BBY/Ud3r3xLquNI/AAAAAAAABOs/vOoVtOd1KOQ/s640/retro+series.jpg" width="442" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">&nbsp;I had fun taking these pictures, and plan on going out and finding some more old stuff to take pictures of. I hope you enjoy these. And if you're interested in the same thing you should look up a cool book that I just bought called, "Bill Wood's Business". Bill is this guy that took photographs back in the 50's in Fort Worth Texas. The best way I can describe it is that he took pictures the same way an accountant does your taxes. He never intended to be artistic or to try to capture the romance of his time. He just took pictures for newspaper ads, informational&nbsp;brochures&nbsp; and anything that the people of Forth Worth Texas needed a picture of. He died in the 70's and a few years ago all of his negatives were sold off at an estate sale and ended up being put together for an art show in&nbsp;Manhattan.&nbsp;It was a huge hit (some may wonder why, others like me will fall in love with them as well) so they made them into a book. &nbsp;It's an incredibly genuine look into the past. Really cool stuff.</span></div>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-90956855996236341592013-07-08T15:41:00.001-07:002013-07-08T15:41:35.704-07:00Utah Landscape<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I've been what you may call "missing in action" lately. Between semesters I tend to take a break from painting and drawing and engage in some of my other artistic pursuits. For instance I truly enjoy photography. This summer I took a trip to Hong Kong and unfortunately did not bring my camera. There were some great photo opportunities that I really regret missing. However, one thing I will say about having gone to China is that I appreciate so much the incredible beauty of the American West. I really feel inspired every time I leave my home of Utah. I start to realize all the things that I love so much about it. I love the dry, crunchy texture of the landscape. I actually used to hate it. I wanted to move somewhere green and full of trees. Then I lived in Ohio for two years and l missed the sterile desert and flat open views. When I say flat, I mean flat from trees. In Ohio there is a constant 50 foot wall of trees that blocks your view. I love being able to see the distance, it helps me to breath.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These photographs that I've taken demonstrate these things that I love when I'm home and long for when I'm gone. Deep crisp textures, warn washed out colors, and wide open space.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e09rg4yca18/Uds6KBAo2tI/AAAAAAAABFA/Dyt46Bj8rFY/s1600/DSC_3044.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="284" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e09rg4yca18/Uds6KBAo2tI/AAAAAAAABFA/Dyt46Bj8rFY/s320/DSC_3044.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qauLM2iaoe0/Uds6KFBUeuI/AAAAAAAABFE/Xfzsh5O-gFs/s1600/DSC_3046.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="201" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qauLM2iaoe0/Uds6KFBUeuI/AAAAAAAABFE/Xfzsh5O-gFs/s320/DSC_3046.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hiS_J0Ne_qQ/Uds6KIYVozI/AAAAAAAABFg/HCcAv0Y3IlE/s1600/DSC_3048.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hiS_J0Ne_qQ/Uds6KIYVozI/AAAAAAAABFg/HCcAv0Y3IlE/s320/DSC_3048.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Pg4iGpQ7hbc/Uds6K1kMe4I/AAAAAAAABFc/KPPH_X-C2IY/s1600/DSC_3063.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Pg4iGpQ7hbc/Uds6K1kMe4I/AAAAAAAABFc/KPPH_X-C2IY/s320/DSC_3063.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LmLBrlRKuqo/Uds6KrgC28I/AAAAAAAABFQ/PZIONRzOOvw/s1600/DSC_3066.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LmLBrlRKuqo/Uds6KrgC28I/AAAAAAAABFQ/PZIONRzOOvw/s320/DSC_3066.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dGaT2NxVrfM/Uds6LHPMljI/AAAAAAAABFY/zthLVgfVdZk/s1600/DSC_3070.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dGaT2NxVrfM/Uds6LHPMljI/AAAAAAAABFY/zthLVgfVdZk/s320/DSC_3070.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--JADiCH--j4/Uds6Lq1y5II/AAAAAAAABF4/DW3ETb-1aUc/s1600/DSC_6184.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--JADiCH--j4/Uds6Lq1y5II/AAAAAAAABF4/DW3ETb-1aUc/s320/DSC_6184.jpg" width="150" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6VbOHKzplNg/Uds6L9CPogI/AAAAAAAABF0/uj7ltM0p7Hg/s1600/DSC_6206.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6VbOHKzplNg/Uds6L9CPogI/AAAAAAAABF0/uj7ltM0p7Hg/s320/DSC_6206.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yL2x9BdpUd0/Uds6MV4n7yI/AAAAAAAABGI/1gr1u9aDnWs/s1600/DSC_6213.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yL2x9BdpUd0/Uds6MV4n7yI/AAAAAAAABGI/1gr1u9aDnWs/s320/DSC_6213.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-28723345807842354922013-07-08T08:43:00.000-07:002013-07-08T08:47:31.550-07:00Building interest in your blog<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I read an interesting blog post today from Seth Godin. He was speaking to many of us who are attempting to find a market or audience of people who will enjoy or find value in our craft. Wether it's photography, painting pictures, or making home made items for your etsy page, etc. Maybe there's some of us who find that interest in our work isn't spreading fast enough, you can get discouraged by this. I've only just started my blog last fall and i can tell that it's a slow growth process. It's been a great blessing for me though, because I've been able to reach some of the people that are good friends and family of mine. And those people have been very encouraging to me and so supportive. I can't tell you how valuable that is.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What Seth Godin said was this:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="p1"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"If your idea isn't spreading, one reason might be that it's for too many people. Or it might be because the cohort that appreciates it isn't tightly connected. When you focus on a smaller, more connected group, it's far easier to make an impact."</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This really made me think. There's &nbsp;a lot of sub cultures out there that will take an interest in just about anything. Appealing to the masses may not be all that it's cracked up to be. So just keep doing whatever it is your doing, have fun, and don't pay too much attention to the Stats on your blog. And while you're thinking about that I'll be trying to swallow that pill myself.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pj3FKJFRxPU/UXnF5EWE3_I/AAAAAAAAAf0/E-Un7C9C_Qc/s1600/dragon+hero.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="612" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pj3FKJFRxPU/UXnF5EWE3_I/AAAAAAAAAf0/E-Un7C9C_Qc/s640/dragon+hero.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-48884516049115012392013-04-17T19:08:00.002-07:002013-04-17T19:08:44.732-07:00Gluttony<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here is my latest artwork. I'm attempting to depict "Gluttony" in all it's forms. I chose to use a burger to depict this concept because burgers are something that i'm habitually gluttonous over. But there's things that we tend to be gluttonous over that aren't even food. Sometimes we overly consume television or video games. There's a lot of us that may be addicted to some of these things, such as cigarettes, gossip magazines, or even Facebook. Sometimes these things just look so delicious it's impossible to resist. I had a lot of fun creating this drawing. As gross at it may appear, I still became hungry for a big juicy burger every time I sat down to work on this.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I sketched out this drawing very thoroughly, I rendered out every detail. Then I scanned it in and laid color over the sketch. I did spend some time going in and working out some further details after that, but I really spent the majority of the time just working on the sketch. I've found that the more you figure out in the sketch phase the easier it becomes to render the color and reach a nice finish.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5FOarAv4TBs/UW9S1haiXdI/AAAAAAAAAfI/Pa6MWN0tPXQ/s1600/gluttony.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5FOarAv4TBs/UW9S1haiXdI/AAAAAAAAAfI/Pa6MWN0tPXQ/s1600/gluttony.jpg" /></a></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-57838624407127467302013-04-07T12:14:00.000-07:002013-04-07T12:14:17.846-07:00Dare Devils<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nSptkzH1yYU/UWHAvje8sBI/AAAAAAAAAeY/HdT0wcCiQwY/s1600/wagon+ride+small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nSptkzH1yYU/UWHAvje8sBI/AAAAAAAAAeY/HdT0wcCiQwY/s640/wagon+ride+small.jpg" width="418" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Every now and then there's a painting that is a milestone painting. This isn't a huge milestone but a little one. As an artist I have to learn to be patient and spend more time on refining my artwork. It's typical that I spend about 7 to maybe 10 hours on an art piece. This piece was something that I did for myself though, I wasn't on any kind of deadline. So throughout this semester I've just worked on it a little bit here and there. In total I think I've spent about 20 hours on this. You may wonder "how did that take 20 hours?" But it really did. I spent a lot of time making clean edges and soft rounded curves. It's the time and patience that this painting required that I feel like is the milestone for me. Eventually I'll learn to always dedicate that level of time and attention to my artwork, and as I get better I'll be able to accomplish more in that space of time.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As a kid I used to pride myself for being a "Dare Devil". &nbsp;Not so much anymore, I guess I got it all out of my system. But I was a short kid growing up so maybe I felt like if I was daring enough to do stuff that even the big kids wouldn't do, than that made up for my shortness. I really enjoyed painting this. As I worked on it I remembered how much fun I had as a kid. I loved growing up, especially in the time that I did. I was born in 1985 so most of my memories took place in the 90's. I loved the 90's, it was like a second "Golden Age". Think about it, the cold war ended in the late 80's. The internet was created, the economy was booming. And some of the best music and movies came out during the 90's. I created a 90's alternative rock pandora station and I've just been listening to it everyday as I think back on how great it was to grow up in that time.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-45730440254959459252013-03-29T16:47:00.001-07:002013-03-29T16:47:40.832-07:00Abominable Snowman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">About a month ago we got an assignment to try to create an illustration using only simple shapes. Our instructor, <a href="http://willterry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Will Terry (children's book illustrator)</a>&nbsp;required us to use only circles and strait edges. Using only those tools we had to create shapes that would illustrate the answer to the question, "why is the abominable snowman so grumpy?" One of my favorite techniques that was developed in the assignment was to create a texture brush that is made out of just noise. The texture feels a lot like an airbrush. In the end I found that by using simple shapes and not including a lot of&nbsp;unnecessary&nbsp;details I was able to create a much stronger emphasis on the story that was happening. There's nothing to distract or take away from the message that I was attempting to illustrate. This assignment was really fun and very helpful.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There's some truth to the thought that artists insert themselves into their artwork, sometimes subconsciously. As I said before we were asked to merely explain why the snow man was grumpy, I chose to put him on a weight scale. I think this is because I did this assignment during the month of february when I was still suffering the regret of holiday and winter "comfort eating". I don't know why, I just crave really bad foods during the winter. So usually I put on a little extra weight and it always gets a little frustrating come february. I can only imagine how the Abominable Snowman feels.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CkLv_ygwd7U/UVYjyc0-3XI/AAAAAAAAAcg/ypxX2G1ZbzQ/s1600/+progress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CkLv_ygwd7U/UVYjyc0-3XI/AAAAAAAAAcg/ypxX2G1ZbzQ/s320/+progress.jpg" width="253" /></a></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-35833963996441570822013-03-25T18:39:00.000-07:002013-03-25T18:39:44.565-07:00Gallery Stroll<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So my most recent assignment was to create an illustration of an event. We were asked to substitute part of the image with an object that would change the meaning of the image but coincide with the purpose of the event. So I chose a Gallery Stroll, which is a public event. And I substituted the windows of these shops with artwork. I tried some new methods with watercolor textures. Hope you like it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/---1nfD1A1WY/UVD72ZJ3x1I/AAAAAAAAAcQ/ZneXUhmugCA/s1600/gallery+stroll+%231.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/---1nfD1A1WY/UVD72ZJ3x1I/AAAAAAAAAcQ/ZneXUhmugCA/s640/gallery+stroll+%231.jpg" width="594" /></a></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-78508237260593511812013-03-01T20:49:00.003-08:002013-03-01T20:49:30.291-08:00Roy's Barber Shop<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi everyone! It's been a while since I've posted. This semester has been pretty busy. This drawing is actually not part of an assignment. I just kind of needed a break from the stuff I've been doing for classes.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I feel like I've been drawing more this semester than I have my whole life. I've noticed that ideas are coming a lot easier and I'm learning a lot more as well, and I feel like that has a lot to do with the fact that I'm drawing more. I believe our minds are like&nbsp;sponges&nbsp; We absorb information like water. Some of us are like sponges just sitting under running water. When a sponge just sits under running water it stops absorbing, it fills up and the water just starts to run off of it. I feel like your creativity juices really start to flow when you are regularly wringing out the sponge. Drawing is like wringing out the sponge. Or writing, or sculpting, or building, or doing anything that is creative. When you wring out the sponge it suddenly becomes absorbant again and can fill with fresh water, or in the case of our minds we fill up with new and fresh ideas. It's been really fun.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm calling this Roy's Barber Shop. When I was a kid growing up in Highland Utah. There was an old barber shop in American Fork called, "Roy's Barber Shop". My dad would take my brother and I there some saturdays to get our hair cut. Roy was an old guy that didn't take requests on hair style, high and tight was the way he cut hair, period. When he was done he would pull out this long vacum hose that was suspended from the ceiling and he would clean you off by&nbsp;vacuuming&nbsp;all the hair off of you. Today Roy's Barber Shop is a tattoo shop, and I've cut my own hair for the past 10 years, but if I find another place like Roy's I'll get my hair cut there for sure. I need to add some letter's on to the window glass that says "Roy's Barber Shop"</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ycnj53rpxKk/UTF_5niapnI/AAAAAAAAAaA/xduJ2C-PHm8/s1600/barber+shop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ycnj53rpxKk/UTF_5niapnI/AAAAAAAAAaA/xduJ2C-PHm8/s400/barber+shop.jpg" width="395" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7xXMvhP8eQ8/UTF_0poZ_wI/AAAAAAAAAZ4/yPZ9_NEpRDI/s1600/img002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7xXMvhP8eQ8/UTF_0poZ_wI/AAAAAAAAAZ4/yPZ9_NEpRDI/s320/img002.jpg" width="316" /></a></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-31558057881918706602013-02-07T00:06:00.000-08:002013-02-07T00:06:16.218-08:00Little Red Riding Hood<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0Lab2Bgt6sk/URNeWsyUVyI/AAAAAAAAAMo/9rQiweb0LoA/s1600/little+red+riding+hood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0Lab2Bgt6sk/URNeWsyUVyI/AAAAAAAAAMo/9rQiweb0LoA/s640/little+red+riding+hood.jpg" width="530" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Here's my latest digital painting assignment. We were asked to create an image based on the story "little Red Riding Hood" but to add our own little twist to it. I originally thought of doing a crazy animal obsessed little girl. You know like Elmira, from Tiny Toons, that would love the guts out of little soft cuddly animals. As I drew out possible versions of little red riding hood, one stood out that looked like she was drunk. So i decided to go with that drawing and just ended up making her and the wolf drunk on wine. Anyways it was fun painting it. Here is my progress images as well, to show how I went about creating this.</div><div style="text-align: center;">Oh and yes I designed little red riding hood strongly after the Mad Magazine kid.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jZTp_A819Hc/URNgGaGqnzI/AAAAAAAAANM/4LSo9Xy6wzc/s1600/little+red+riding+hood+progress+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jZTp_A819Hc/URNgGaGqnzI/AAAAAAAAANM/4LSo9Xy6wzc/s320/little+red+riding+hood+progress+4.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fWu7T8X_eO8/URNgFQCcvuI/AAAAAAAAAM8/FbmY_jrMIgI/s1600/little+red+riding+hood+progress+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fWu7T8X_eO8/URNgFQCcvuI/AAAAAAAAAM8/FbmY_jrMIgI/s320/little+red+riding+hood+progress+1.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xIRw6-hoYf4/URNgFq9ysPI/AAAAAAAAANA/3Ryy6kzu9EM/s1600/little+red+riding+hood+progress+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xIRw6-hoYf4/URNgFq9ysPI/AAAAAAAAANA/3Ryy6kzu9EM/s320/little+red+riding+hood+progress+2.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-G9CVpZ7lYN0/URNgGcNZXAI/AAAAAAAAANQ/lZzkBItUuwk/s1600/little+red+riding+hood+progress+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-G9CVpZ7lYN0/URNgGcNZXAI/AAAAAAAAANQ/lZzkBItUuwk/s320/little+red+riding+hood+progress+3.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-1277296362181904012013-01-28T20:51:00.001-08:002013-01-28T20:51:27.897-08:00My Friend Mark<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EKfSjWLCC2Q/UQdSWtYFOEI/AAAAAAAAAMA/A0Z_KYSeQMQ/s1600/IMG_3802.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EKfSjWLCC2Q/UQdSWtYFOEI/AAAAAAAAAMA/A0Z_KYSeQMQ/s320/IMG_3802.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VkI3l2Zb0jk/UQdSWypPx_I/AAAAAAAAAME/YZUTT1OOJ2o/s1600/mark+drawing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VkI3l2Zb0jk/UQdSWypPx_I/AAAAAAAAAME/YZUTT1OOJ2o/s640/mark+drawing.jpg" width="488" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I loved doing this drawing of one of my best friends Mark Cagle. His wife Jess saw that I was doing drawings for anyone who sent me a picture. So she actually texted this picture to me one morning and I had to draw it right away. Mark literally is the craziest guy I know. He was my manager at P.F Changs, where I served tables for five years. When he gets excited and hyper, he just bounces off the walls. He was so fun to work with and one of the only reasons why I would consider ever going back to serving tables. So thank you so much Jess for sending me this awesome picture. And thank you to everyone else that has sent me pictures. I haven't gotten around to doing sketches of each of them, but I've loved the creative boost, and still look forward to getting them done and posted.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This semester has been super busy so far. A lot of work. I've been hoping that the work load will simmer down a bit. That is until today when I realized I really shouldn't be hoping for less work, I should hope that I'll get better and better and more up to the task of producing larger amounts of quality artwork. I really look forward to the end of the semester, not because it will be a nice break but because i know by then I'll be that much better and that much more capable of stepping into the commercial world of illustration.</span></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-79374415244380042152013-01-20T17:54:00.000-08:002013-01-20T18:01:50.038-08:00Beware of Dog! movie poster<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So this weekend I decided to try something new. I posted on my facebook page and asked anybody that wanted to, to post a photo (any photo) on my wall and I would choose one and do a picture of it. My friend Glenn Butterfield was the first person to post. He posted a photo of my beloved dog Georgia, which I owned for the first few months of her life and then due to circumstances I had to give her away. Glenn took her and took excellent care of her. I was so sad to let her go. But happy that he took her and eventually found a happy home for her. I really enjoyed doing this picture. I've really gotten into some of the artwork of old horror movie posters. Like The Mummy or Dracula. &nbsp;I thought of matching up the mellow drama of the poster style with the everyday struggles of owning a dog. I had a good laugh with it. Hope you like it.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jcgXOgRMmPo/UPyc855RcUI/AAAAAAAAALY/GegfaVSu4oY/s1600/photo.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jcgXOgRMmPo/UPyc855RcUI/AAAAAAAAALY/GegfaVSu4oY/s320/photo.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-H-fdpRCIQFI/UPyhfgyHhhI/AAAAAAAAALw/pOA45qkf2hY/s1600/dog+horror+poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-H-fdpRCIQFI/UPyhfgyHhhI/AAAAAAAAALw/pOA45qkf2hY/s640/dog+horror+poster.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br />todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-76098129982003068902013-01-17T17:43:00.001-08:002013-01-17T20:53:10.423-08:00Tree house<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cbG5fXc9JAo/UPina-WcbtI/AAAAAAAAAKg/uXMBMdlZbyM/s1600/Dwelling+BW.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cbG5fXc9JAo/UPina-WcbtI/AAAAAAAAAKg/uXMBMdlZbyM/s320/Dwelling+BW.jpg" width="313" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Rvxit7MzxWo/UPindxTwX2I/AAAAAAAAAKo/eblmiuroa-o/s1600/Dwelling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Rvxit7MzxWo/UPindxTwX2I/AAAAAAAAAKo/eblmiuroa-o/s320/Dwelling.jpg" width="313" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">When I was a kid I used to dream of building an amazing tree house. I would sit and sketch and sketch all day long, just ideas about my tree house. Every now and then I would try to actually build one in some empty tree in a vacant field in my neighborhood. But eventually some adult would come along and ruin it all. When I sat down to work on a new digital painting, I thought back on all those sketches I used to do. I had so much fun thinking about all the little details that would be part of the tree house. There were a lot more little things that didn't end up making it into the drawing, which I kind of regret and I'm thinking of maybe recreating it in a different way. After refining the sketch and laying in values I added color. After adding the color I kind of missed the old black and white version. So I saved a version of the black and white, just to hold on to.&nbsp;</div>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-58303782331138319362013-01-07T16:08:00.000-08:002013-01-17T20:53:39.251-08:003 Bears<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-arklIwfYlHk/UOtix3aJsFI/AAAAAAAAAJs/HkcaUq_Xlmg/s1600/3+bears.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-arklIwfYlHk/UOtix3aJsFI/AAAAAAAAAJs/HkcaUq_Xlmg/s640/3+bears.jpg" width="476" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">So here is the final version of the 3 bears digital painting that I did for my final fall semester. Even now there's still things that I'd like to change about it. I guess you always feel like there's things you can improve on but I figure i might as well go ahead and post it.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: center;">Spring semester started today and I'm so excited. I loved the fall semester and I learned to much. I really look forward to improving and learning more.&nbsp;</div>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-7102100117292465222012-12-09T13:29:00.000-08:002013-01-17T22:18:40.287-08:003 Bears Progress<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7QtsbtL8Y7w/UMT_4dop3tI/AAAAAAAAAJY/FtQ6wByOvok/s1600/3+bears+prt+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7QtsbtL8Y7w/UMT_4dop3tI/AAAAAAAAAJY/FtQ6wByOvok/s640/3+bears+prt+2.jpg" width="476" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sDjd9PF8C2E/UMT_2OViVnI/AAAAAAAAAJQ/x3putVmxA3c/s1600/3+bears.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sDjd9PF8C2E/UMT_2OViVnI/AAAAAAAAAJQ/x3putVmxA3c/s400/3+bears.jpg" width="298" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So it's been a crazy few weeks of school. I've been doing a lot with my figure drawing class and catching up on my sketchbooks so I haven't had a lot of time to work on stuff that I can post. But I do have my final assignment for my digital illustration class that I'm working on this weekend. It's due tomorrow =0 (i might be a little worried) It's been really fun though. The assignment instructions was just to do any variation on the 3 bears. I plan on moving in the direction of children's book illustration in my career so I decided to follow that with my approach to this assignment. My wife recently bought a children's book for our daughter that's called "Camping Spree with Mr. Mcgee" illustrated by Chris Van Dusen. I really like his style, he uses bright colors and usually depicts buildings, cars and furniture from the mid 20th century. I followed his color pallet and looked closely at his way of drawing cars. I love his methods on metal and I think it really made my car come to life with this illustration. I've enjoyed it a lot and i'll make sure to post my completed version. Thanks for reading.</span>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883990403167034209.post-15395463363103407222012-11-12T17:27:00.001-08:002013-01-17T22:19:18.484-08:00Clarence, the Angel<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TD1M7FBip14/UKGeB_-oqyI/AAAAAAAAAJA/Nn6Wdu_Zz1M/s1600/clarence.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="170" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TD1M7FBip14/UKGeB_-oqyI/AAAAAAAAAJA/Nn6Wdu_Zz1M/s200/clarence.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2Lix2m17kiA/UKGd_wGSU4I/AAAAAAAAAIw/FyttzmG2iXM/s1600/clarence+progress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2Lix2m17kiA/UKGd_wGSU4I/AAAAAAAAAIw/FyttzmG2iXM/s200/clarence+progress.jpg" width="182" /></a><br />&nbsp;<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AAmB65wjTuE/UKGeA2Z129I/AAAAAAAAAI4/eGrTu74D0oU/s1600/clarence+revised.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AAmB65wjTuE/UKGeA2Z129I/AAAAAAAAAI4/eGrTu74D0oU/s400/clarence+revised.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's been about a week since my last addition to the "it's a wonderful life" poster project. I really wish I could be working more rapidly on this, but it seems I can only work on this between all the other stuff. So to explain this process, I started out with the sketch, and&nbsp;laid&nbsp;in some grey tones, then I began working on color. I tried keeping with the same color pallet as with the George and Mary painting so that when I bring them together they'll be cohesive. So I brought the painting to a completed stage and pasted it into the frame work for the poster. (That's the second image I have posted) When i saw it side by side with the George and Mary painting I saw that they didn't have the same feeling. So I had to go back to my color stage and simplify a bit and warm up the colors. Also I went for a bit more monochromatic look. I really don't want these smaller portraits to take attention away from the center of the poster which will be George and Mary, so i simplified it a bit more and the monochrome will help to tone down the level of attention that it draws. Once I got it to fit the look that I wanted, I placed it inside of a circle which will be the frame work for each of the individual portraits. I kind of liked having the tip of his cap coming out of the circle, I feel like it gives it a greater sense of volume, as though it's coming out of the framework.&nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also wanted to thank everyone that has shown interest in my blog. I hope you can understand how much it helps to have the encouragement from you all. It can be pretty intimidating working on becoming an illustrator. There's a lot of really talented people that I've met over the past few years of school and when I hear people say that they like what I'm doing here on my blog it makes me feel like maybe I'm on the right track. So thank you so much with supporting me with this stuff that I love.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">( Clarence "the angel" - digital painting )</span></div>todd wilsonhttps://plus.google.com/104425352765497478415noreply@blogger.com0